1 Understand the characteristics of successful business teams
1.1 Discuss the characteristics of effective business teams
1.2 Analyse the value of theoretical models when building effective business teams
1.3 Evaluate the effectiveness of having defined team roles and successful business teams
2 Understand how to develop successful business teams
2.1 Evaluate methods used for team development that support team members to achieve given objectives
2.2 Assess the techniques used to motivate individuals and teams to achieve given objectives
2.3 Examine how performance feedback can be used to develop teams
2.4 Discuss how to determine criteria to monitor the effectiveness of teams
2.5 Assess how to develop team performance against agreed criteria
1 Understand the characteristics of successful business teams
Characteristics of effective business team: definition of team (e.g. difference between a group and a team); types of team e.g. functional, project, matrix, contract, self-managed team; characteristics of successful business teams e.g. participative leadership, loyalty, trust, open communication, shared goals and objectives, shared responsibility, shared vision, common purpose, cooperation between members, motivation; effectiveness of having defined team roles (e.g. Belbin’s team role theory, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), contribution of different team roles, establishing a balanced team, strengths and weaknesses)
Analysis of theoretical models: behavioural models (e.g. Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid; McGregor’s theory X and Y model), Contingency/situational models (e.g. Adair’s Action Centred Leadership model, Tannenbaum and Schmidt’s Leadership Continuum, Fielder’s contingency model), Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership model, Transformational Leadership, Transactional Leadership (Bennis, Bass)
2 Understand how to develop successful business teams
Team development and motivation techniques: stages of team development i.e. development stages (e.g. Tuckman; Leigh and Maynard’s, Honey’s chaotic); team leader role (e.g. facilitating development); team building (e.g. development activities, training, mentoring, coaching); motivating team members; importance of motivation; importance of negotiation and bargaining skills for motivation; theories of motivation (e.g. McGregor’s Theory X and theory Y, Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene theory, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Vroom’s Expectancy theory, Alderfer’s ERG theory, Deci and Ryan’s self-determination theory); factors that motivate people to perform (e.g. praise, encouragement, recognition, celebration of achievement, clear goals, clear feedback, open communication channels, development opportunities.
Performance feedback: importance of continuous feedback relating to objectives e.g. listening, observing, open communications, asking others; sources of feedback, e.g. performance reviews, appraisals, monitoring activities, colleagues and customers Leigh and Maynard’s Effective Feedback.
Monitoring and developing team performance: monitor team performance by setting SMART objectives, comparison of performance with standards, quantity-based measures (e.g. production levels, customer enquiries and feedback, error rates, speed of response), qualitative measures (e.g. views, opinions, performance data, sampling, timing, proportion of work checked), methods of collecting and interpreting data on performance (e.g. work schedules, progress review meetings, milestones, regular reporting systems), importance of contingency plans e.g. making adjustments to plans; develop teams by measuring and evaluating performance e.g. against objectives and achievements, setting, reviewing and re-setting SMART objectives e.g. benchmarks and targets and taking corrective action, involvement of team members in reviewing performance, importance of celebrating achievements, team building activities, training and development.